Storage system with actuated media player

ABSTRACT

A data storage library includes multiple storage cartridges arranged in a rack; read/write control electronics integrated within a media player assembly; and actuation means for achieving relative movement between the media player assembly and the multiple storage cartridges in the rack to allow the read/write control electronics within the media player assembly to selectively couple with and provide data access to at least a subset of the multiple storage cartridges.

PRIORITY CLAIM TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/358,255 entitled “Storage System with ActuatedMedia Player” and filed on Mar. 19, 2019, which is hereby incorporatedby reference for all that it discloses or teaches.

SUMMARY

A storage system includes read/write control electronics integratedwithin a media player assembly, multiple storage cartridges arranged ona rack, and actuation means for achieving relative movement between themedia player assembly and the multiple storage cartridges in the rack toallow the read/write control electronics within the media playerassembly to selectively couple with and provide data access to at leasta subset of the multiple storage cartridges.

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Otherfeatures, details, utilities, and advantages of the claimed subjectmatter will be apparent from the following more particular writtenDetailed Description of various implementations and implementations asfurther illustrated in the accompanying drawings and defined in theappended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example mass storage system that utilizes one ormore robotically-actuated media players to access data stored in arack-type library.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a portion of a data storagesystem including an example robotically-actuated media player thatselectively couples itself to and decouples itself from various storagecartridges arranged in a rack-type library.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a portion of a data storagesystem including another example robotically-actuated media player thatselectively couples itself to and decouples itself from various storagecartridges arranged in a rack-type library.

FIG. 4 is a functional block representation of an examplerobotically-actuated media player configured to move relative to andselectively access storage cartridges in a rack-type library.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example robotically-actuated media player thatprovides parallel data access to multiple storage cartridges in arack-type library.

FIG. 6 is a functional block representation of a system including anexample robotically-actuated media player that provides parallel dataaccess to multiple storage cartridges in a rack-type library.

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary library arrangement of storagecartridges that may be accessed by a robotically-actuated media player.

FIG. 8 illustrates example operations for accessing data with arobotically-actuated media player.

FIG. 9A illustrates a top perspective view of an example storagecartridge that may be accessed with a robotically-actuated media player.

FIG. 9B illustrates a bottom perspective view of the example storagecartridge shown in FIG. 9A.

FIG. 10 illustrates aspects of an example racking system that uses arobotically-actuated media player assembly to selectively accessindividual storage cartridges that lack independent read/write controlcircuitry.

FIG. 11 illustrates aspects of another example racking system that usesa robotically-actuated media player assembly to selectively accessindividual storage cartridges that lack independent read/write controlcircuitry.

DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS

The growing use of cloud-based storage solutions has driven demand forlow-cost data storage systems capable of retaining large volumes ofdata. However, as the amount of stored data continues to increaseexponentially, so too does the difficulty in ensuring access to the dataat speeds acceptable to both service providers and end users. Furthercomplicating these cost and time-to-data access challenges is the demandto make these systems serviceable with minimal system impact. The impactof system maintenance depends greatly on the size of the system'sindividual field replacement units (FRUs) (e.g., the smallest storagemedia block that can be removed and replaced individually). If, forexample, a storage system includes a sealed enclosure with 6 driveshardwired to a printed circuit board, it may be that all 6 drives haveto be taken offline in order to replace a single drive. This disruptssystem activities more than a drive replacement in a system whereindividual drives can be removed and replaced without affectingaccessibility and/or power flow to other drives.

There exist a number of different storage systems designed to addressone or more of the above challenges. For instance, on-line mass datastorage (sometimes referred to as secondary or cloud storage) refers toone or more interconnected data storage units that are actively runningand available for data access operations (i.e., read and/or writeoperations). Example on-line mass data storage units include hard diskdrives (“HDDs”), optical drives, solid state drives (“SSDs”), and flashmemory. While online mass data storage units provide fast access to data(typically less than 2 milliseconds), these systems consume significantpower in an on-line state and are therefore considered relativelyexpensive to operate and maintain.

In contrast, off-line (or cold) mass data storage refers to one or moreinterconnected data storage units that are kept in a power off stateand/or utilize remotely located storage media to store data. Typically,off-line mass data storage utilizes one or more interconnected tapedrives, each with numerous tapes associated with the drive. While thesesystems can be operated at high energy savings as compared to onlinemass data storage systems, cold storage systems typically offer a slowTTD. A read or write operation may entail retrieving a desired tape fromits storage location and loading the tape into an associated drive(player). In some of these systems, a robotic arm is utilized toretrieve each tape, place the tape in the drive, and return the tape toits original shelf position once the read or write is finished. However,there is a significant time delay associated with this round-triptransport of the tape to the drive. Moreover, tape access is furtherdelayed due to the fact that the drive (player) may wind the tape spoolto locate data of interest, which can take anywhere from tens of secondsto multiple minutes.

The disclosed mass data storage system, which may provide for eitheroff-line or on-line storage, can achieve TTD much faster than that ofoff-line tape mass data storage while maintaining build and operatingcosts competitive with off-line tape mass data storage. This isaccomplished, in part, by utilizing robotic actuation to move a mediaplayer relative to storage cartridges on a rack-type library. The mediaplayer is able to read data from and write data to each storagecartridge without moving the individual storage cartridges from theirassociated rack positions.

In various implementations, the actuated media player disclosed hereinmay assume a variety of different characteristics and be used to access(read/write) data on a variety of types of storage media includingwithout limitation disk-based storage (e.g., magnetic disks, opticaldisks, capacitive disks) and solid state memory (e.g., SSDs). By exampleand without limitation, exemplary storage media discussed herein includeportable storage cartridges that resemble conventional hard drive disks(HDD), but without certain mechanical and electrical features that wouldotherwise be necessary to enable the cartridge to operate in astand-alone fashion. Each cartridge may, for example, generally assumethe form of an HDD minus control electronics and, in some cases, otherelements that can be offloaded from the cartridge and supplied by theactuated media player, such as VCM magnets and spindle motor components.The removal of these elements from the individual cartridges in thelibrary allows the provisioning of a large-scale, high-capacity storagesystem with the benefits of magnetic disc storage at a significantlylower cost.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example mass storage system 100 that utilizes oneor more robotically-actuated media players (e.g., media players 102,114, 120) to access (read data from or write data to) storage cartridgesin a rack-type library. Specifically, FIG. 1 illustrates a rack 116holding a number of storage cartridges (e.g. a storage cartridge 118)arranged in rows and columns on the rack 116. Although FIG. 1illustrates the single rack 116, the mass storage system 100 may includemultiple racks oriented in adjacent or separate physical locations orfacilities, each rack having one or more robotically-actuated mediaplayers to access its associated storage media.

In one implementation, the mass storage system 100 is an off-linestorage system that maintains the individual storage cartridges (e.g.,118) in an off or low power state until selectively powered and accessedby one of the media players 102, 114, or 120. Each of the media players102, 114, and 120 is designed to move across a range of rack positionsand provide access to a subset of the storage cartridges in the rack116. For example, the media player 102 may be robotically actuated tomove up and down relative to a column of storage cartridges and/or tomove left and right relative to a row of storage cartridges.

By example and without limitation, the media player 102 is shown toinclude two controllers—a R/W controller 122 and a player actuationcontroller 124. In various implementations, the R/W controller 122 andthe player actuation controller 124 may include software or acombination of software and hardware, such as control instructionsexecuted by one or more separate or shared device controllers (e.g.,microprocessors), peripheral interface controllers (“PICs”),application-specific integrated circuits (“ASICs”), systems on chips(“SoCs”), etc.

The R/W controller 122 selectively controls the R/W circuitry 108 tocarry out actions related data access (reads and writes) on selectstorage cartridges within the rack 116. For example, the R/W controller122 may control the R/W circuitry 108 to engage switches to openappropriate read/write channels, select a preamplifier and configurepreamplifier settings, control actuator movement for positioning variousread/write heads of a select storage cartridge, spin up or down aspindle motor within a storage cartridge, controllably actuate a voicecoil motor (VCM) within a storage cartridge, and/or control otherelectronics that facilitate power and data access to (e.g., read writeaccess) the storage cartridges.

The player actuation controller 124, in contrast, selectively controlsplayer actuation robotics 112 to effect movement of the media player 102relative to the rack 116, such as to position the media player 102 fordata access to different media units within the rack 116. The playeractuation robotics 112 may include a variety of different components indifferent implementations, but includes at least a motor that propelsthe media player 102 in one or more directions across a stage. The stagemay be, for example, a rail (e.g., rails 130, 132), a cable pully, orother track usable to guide movement of the media player relative to therack 116. In one implementation, the player actuation robotics 112 mayinclude a linear motion actuator, such as a rack and pinion linearactuator, a belt-driven linear actuator, a V-guide rail and wheelsystem, or a screw rail actuator and screw rail guide.

Although the player actuation robotics 112 and the player actuationcontroller 124 are shown to be internal to the media player 102, someimplementations may include aspects of the player actuation controller124 and/or the player actuation robotics 112 at location(s) external tothe media player(s) within a given system. For example, the media player102 may be suspended on a system of cables that are moved in apully-like fashion by a motor affixed to the rack 116 controlled by arack controller (not shown).

In operation, the system host (e.g., server, rack-level controller)transmits data access (read and write) commands to the media player 102that specify target logical block addresses (LBA) for executingassociated data access operations. Responsive to receipt of each dataaccess command, the player actuation controller 124 uses a storedlogical-to-physical block map to identify a physical storage cartridgelocation within the rack 116 corresponding to the target LBA. The playeractuation controller 124 generates control signals to cause the playeractuation robotics 112 to robotically propel the media player 102 acrossthe stage (e.g., the set of rails 130 and 132) to a position suitablefor accessing the storage cartridge at the identified physical storagecartridge location. In some implementations, some or all aspects of theplayer actuation controller 124 and the player actuation robotics 112are included in the mass storage system 100 at positions external to themedia player 102.

In addition to the above-described components, the media player 102additionally includes a power source 126 (e.g., a power supply line to ahost, power outlet, or battery source) and a communication system 110that enables communications with the host. Communication between thehost and the media player 102 are digital or primarily digital, andaccomplished via signal transmission between various compute nodesachieved via wired or wireless transmission protocols including, withoutlimitation, one or more inter-integrated circuits (“I2C”), serialadvanced technology attachment (“SATA”), serial attached small computersystem interface (“SAS”), universal serial bus (“USB”), peripheralcomponent interconnect express (“PCIe”), NVMe, Ethernet, wirelesschannels, etc. In one implementation, the media player 102 has ahard-wired connection (e.g., cable) facilitating communications with thehost, such as a rack-level controller (not shown). In anotherimplementation, the media player 102 includes a transceiver and anantenna configured to wirelessly receive and respond to host commandsover a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN).

In addition to being configured for communication with a host, the mediaplayers 102, 114, 120 on the rack 116 may further be interconnected toone another as well as to various other compute nodes distributed acrossother racks controlled by the same or different system hosts.Communication between the storage racks (e.g., the rack 116), host(s),various computer networks, and the external data source(s) and/ordestination(s) may occur using a variety of communication protocols(e.g., transmission control protocol/internet protocol (“TCP/IP”),packet over synchronous optical networking/synchronous digital hierarchy(“SONET/SDH”), multiprotocol label switching (“MPLS”), asynchronoustransfer mode (“ATM”), Ethernet, and frame relay). As a result, data maybe accessed and moved between the individual storage racks and externaldata source(s) as desired.

In one implementation, each of the storage cartridges (e.g., the storagecartridge 118) within the rack 116 is a distinct storage medium or setof storage media with certain read/write controls removed from thecartridge (e.g., as in a traditional storage drive) and instead providedat the media player 102. As a result, the media player 102 canselectively power (e.g., power-on, power-off, spin-up, spin-down, etc.)an individual storage cartridge as desired to read data from and/orwrite data to the cartridge without having to supply power to additionalstorage cartridges within the rack 116.

In one implementation, the media player 102 is designed to selectivelycouple with and provide data access to a single one of the storagecartridges at a time. In other implementations, the media player 102 isadapted to simultaneously couple to multiple storage cartridges at once(e.g., two or three adjacent cartridges) and to provide parallel dataaccess operations to two or more of those storage cartridges.

In one implementation, each portable storage cartridge (e.g., thestorage cartridge 118) includes a housing which encloses at least onerotatable magnetic recording medium (disc) and at least one dataread/write transducer (head). In some embodiments, the housing is asealed housing. Each head is configured to be aerodynamically supportedadjacent a magnetic recording surface of the corresponding disc by anair-fluid bearing established by high velocity rotation of the disc. Thehead(s) are radially advanced across the recording surface(s) using anactuator arm, and the heads are configured to write data to data tracksdefined on the recording surfaces. Each combination of head and discsurface is referred to as a head-disc interface (HDI), so the cartridgesof the present disclosure can be characterized as HDI cartridges eachhaving at least one HDI. The housing of each cartridge protects theHDI(s) from contaminants that may interfere with the operation of thecartridge. In some embodiments where environmental controls aresufficiently in place to guard against contaminants, the cartridge maycomprise housing such that the internal discs of one cartridge areexposed to the same environment as the internal discs of othercartridges in the system.

The above-described system configuration permits the individual storagecartridges in the rack 116 to be individually removed, serviced, and/orreplaced without affecting a flow of data to or from to any of the otherstorage cartridges. In other implementations, the media player 102 isdesigned to access data from other types of storage devices, such as SSDdevices, tapes etc.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a portion of data storagesystem 200 including a robotically-actuated media player 202 thatselectively couples itself to and decouples itself from various storagecartridges arranged in a rack-type library. In FIG. 2, therobotically-actuated media player 202 is shown coupled to a storagecartridge 204.

The robotically-actuated media player 202 may include several elementsthe same as or similar to elements of the media player(s) discussedabove with respect to FIG. 1 including a R/W controller 206 and a playeractuation controller 208. In one implementation, the R/W controller 206executes firmware commands to control various hardware elements of therobotically-actuated media player 202 and/or to transmit control signalsto the storage cartridge 204.

When coupled to the media player 202 as shown in FIG. 2, the storagecartridge 204 may receive hardware control signals (e.g., power signals,read/write signals) from the robotically-actuated media player 202. Asused herein, the term “hardware control signals” refers to analogcontrol signals, such as signals sent from a microprocessor or chip to ahardware component that lacks processing capability. For example, thestorage cartridge 204 may receive power signals (e.g., VCM control andspindle motor control) from the robotically-actuated media player 202through interconnect ports 230, 232 as well as control signals forreading data from and writing data to the storage cartridge 204.According to one implementation, the storage cartridge 204 does notinclude an internal SOC or other processor for communicating with therobotically-actuated media player 202. For example, communicationsbetween the robotically-actuated media player 202 and the storagecartridge 204 may be primarily or exclusively analog communications.

The player actuation controller 208 receives and interprets addresssignals and controls actuation robotics (e.g., wheels 216, a motor 218)to transport the robotically-actuated media player 202 along a stage 220(e.g., a rail) and to position the robotically-actuated media player 202for read/write access to a target storage cartridge. In addition topropelling the robotically-actuated media player 202 along the stage 220(e.g., in the Z-plane of FIG. 2) the actuation robotics may, in someimplementations, provide for movement of the robotically-actuated mediaplayer 202 along a secondary plane (e.g., the Y-plane into the page),such so as to enable access to consecutive storage cartridges arrangedalong rows in addition to or in lieu of a column. Depending on thespecific product design, the robotically-actuated media player 202 maybe capable of providing data access to storage cartridges arranged alonga single row or column and/or to storage cartridges arranged acrossmultiple rows or columns.

In FIG. 2, the media player 202 further includes an actuation mechanism228 for propelling a portion of the robotically-actuated media player202 both toward and away from the stage 220, along the X-plane. In thisway, the interconnect port 230 on the robotically-actuated media player202 may be controllably aligned with and selectively mated to thecorresponding port 232 on the storage cartridge 204. This port may, forexample, include all requisite connections for controlling data accesson the storage cartridge 204. In other implementations, therobotically-actuated media player 202 is designed to move with one ormore degrees of freedom different from that described above.

In FIG. 2, external voice coil magnets 234 and 236 are shown includedwithin the robotically-actuated media player 202. After the playeractuation controller 208 controls the actuation robotics to move therobotically-actuated media player 202 to a target position along the Y-Zplane, the player actuation controller 208 may control the actuationmechanism 228 to move the robotically-actuated media player 202 in theX-direction to align the interconnect port 230 with the correspondingport 232 on the storage cartridge 204. Once this alignment is achieved,upper and lower end effector elements 238 and 240 of therobotically-actuated media player 202 may be actuated toward one anotheralong the Z-axis to mate the interconnect ports 230 and 232 and also tobring the voice coil magnets 234 and 236 into proximity of and alignmentwith opposite sides of a voice coil 242 included within the storagecartridge 204.

In one implementation, the lower effector element 240 is actuatableaccording to one or more degrees of freedom independent of the lowervoice coil magnet 236. For example, the interconnect port 230 may bemated with the corresponding port 232 prior to (or after) the playeractuation controller 208 controls actuation robotics to move the voicecoil magnets 234 and 236 into a magnetic coupling of the voice coil 242.

When current is flowed through the voice coil 242 (e.g., from the R/Wcontroller 206 and through the mated interconnect ports 230, 232), themagnetic field generated by the magnets 234, 236 interacts with theelectric field of the current moving through the voice coil, and theinteraction results in a Lorentz force that pivots an actuator arm(e.g., actuator arm 258) in the storage cartridge 204 to a predeterminedradial position relative to a rotating storage media that is rotated bya spindle motor 250.

In other implementations, the robotically-actuated media player 202 doesnot include the voice coil magnets 234 and 236. For example, the voicecoil magnets 234 and 236 may be internal to the storage cartridge 204 asin more traditional hard drive devices. In still another implementation,the VCM of the storage cartridge 204 includes a VCM magnet internal tothe storage cartridge 204 and one or more voice coils integrated withinthe robotically-actuated media player 202 at a location external to thestorage cartridge 204. For example, the player actuation controller 208may control actuation robotics of the robotically-actuated media player202 to selectively move one or more external voice coil(s) intoproximity of the magnetic field generated by the internal VCM magnetwhen mating the robotically-actuated media player 202 with the storagecartridge 204.

The above-described media player 202 and media player actuationelectronics (e.g., player actuation controller 208, the motor 218, thestage 220) permit the storage cartridge 204 to be accessed by therobotically-actuated media player 202 without removing the storagecartridge 204 from its original position on the rack (not shown).

Although other implementations are contemplated, the storage cartridge204 is shown to include a housing 252 that encases two magneticrecording discs 254, 256, three actuator arms 258, 260, and 262 and fourheads (e.g., a head 246) provide a total of four head-to-disk interfaces(HDIs). Any respective numbers of these respective elements can be usedas desired, so long as there is at least one disc surface and oneassociated head to provide at least one HDI within the cartridge. Withinthe storage cartridge 204, the two discs 254 and 256 are mounted to adisc hub assembly 248 that is rotated by a spindle motor 264.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a portion of a data storagesystem 300 including another example robotically-actuated media player302 that selectively couples itself to and decouples itself from variousstorage cartridges arranged in a rack-type library. In FIG. 3, therobotically-actuated media player 302 is shown in position toselectively couple to a storage cartridge 304. The robotically-actuatedmedia player 302 includes several of the same elements shown anddescribed with respect to FIG. 2, including a R/W controller 306, aplayer actuation controller 308, and a motor 318. Unless statedotherwise like-named components of FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are assumed toperform the same or similar functions.

In contrast to FIG. 2, the robotically-actuated media player 302 of FIG.3 further includes an external VCM 314 and an external spindle motor310. The external VCM 314 includes a shaft 312 designed to extendthrough an aperture in a housing 352 of the storage cartridge 304 tomate with an actuator hub 320 and rotate actuator arms 358, 360, 362. Inthis way, the shaft 312 engages the actuator hub 320 to radially advancethe heads (e.g., the head 366) across the disc surfaces in response tocontrol inputs supplied to the external VCM 314.

In addition to the external VCM 314, the robotically-actuated mediaplayer 302 is also shown to include an external spindle motor 310 with aspindle shaft 346 designed to mate with a spindle hub 348 within thestorage cartridge. This mechanical engagement between the spindle shaft346 and the spindle hub 348 facilitates rotation of the discs 354, 356upon activation of the external spindle motor 310 and operation ofspindle motor circuitry (not shown) by the R/W controller 306. Althoughthe media player 302 of FIG. 3 includes both the external VCM 314 andthe external motor 310, still other implementations may include only oneof these components while the other is integrated within the storagecartridge 304.

FIG. 4 is a functional block representation of a system 400 including anexample robotically-actuated media player 402 configured to moverelative to and selectively access storage cartridges in a rack-typelibrary. The robotically-actuated media player 402 includes drive accesscontrol electronics 406 that provide power and read/write control of thestorage cartridge 404. Although the drive access control electronics 406may include different components in different implementations, thecontrol electronics 406 in FIG. 4 include a system on chip (SOC) controlcircuit 426, volatile memory 428 (e.g., DRAM), non-volatile memory 410(e.g., Flash), a power control circuit 430. The SOC 426 includes aprogrammable processing core that utilizes firmware stored in thevolatile memory 428 to provide top level control for the storagecartridge 404. The SOC 426 communicates with an external controlcircuit, such as a host, local server, rack controller, etc. via aninterface connector 442.

In addition to the drive access control electronic 406, therobotically-actuated media player 402 also includes player actuationrobotics 412, including for example, a motor (not shown) that propelsthe robotically-actuated media player 402 across a stage (not shown)relative to the various storage cartridges in the rack-type library.

Responsive to receipt of a command from an external host (e.g., from arack controller or other external host), the player actuation robotics412 move the robotically-actuated media player 402 into position toaccess a target storage cartridge. Such movement may include horizontaland/or vertical movement relative toward the target storage cartridge aswell as movements to engage end effector elements (e.g., end effectorelements 238, 240 in FIG. 2) of the player toward the target storagecartridge to realize the electrical and mechanical couplings that enabledata access.

Once the media player 402 is moved into position and electricallycoupled to the target storage cartridge 404, the SOC 426 instructs thepower circuit 430 to provide power to the target storage cartridge. Inresponse, the power circuit 430 shunts power from a power supply (notshown) to provide both VCM and spindle motor power signals, as shown.

In addition to commanding the power circuit 430, the SOC 426 may accessfirmware stored in the non-volatile memory 410 to retrieve operatingprotocols for the target storage cartridge 404. In some implementations,these operating protocols may be received via transmission from a systemhost or other external processing device. To read data from a targetstorage cartridge, the SOC 426 sends a preamplifier control signal tothe target storage cartridge 404 via a serial interface or other commandconnection and the requested data is then read back to the SOC 426 fromthe target storage cartridge 404.

Aspects of the various control electronics within the media player 402may be implemented in a tangible computer-readable storage mediareadable by a computing node within or communicatively coupled to themass data storage system. The term “tangible computer-readable storagemedia” includes, but is not limited to, random access memory (“RAM”),ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CDROM, digitalversatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other tangible medium which can be used to store the desiredinformation and which can be accessed by mobile device or computer. Asused herein, the term “tangible computer-readable media” excludestransitory media such as propagating signals. In contrast to tangiblecomputer-readable storage media, intangible computer-readablecommunication signals may embody computer readable instructions, datastructures, program modules, or other data resident in a modulated datasignal, such as a carrier wave or other signal transport mechanism.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example robotically-actuated media player 502 thatprovides parallel data access to multiple storage cartridges in arack-type library storage system 500. As used herein, “parallel access”refers to simultaneous read or write access to at least two differentstorage cartridges. According to one implementation, therobotically-actuated media player 502 is adapted to electrically coupleand to provide control signals to multiple storage cartridges at once.The robotically-actuated media player 502 may be actuated along a stage504 and selectively coupled to and decoupled from various sets ofstorage cartridges arranged in the rack-type library.

The robotically-actuated media player 502 is designed to couple to threeadjacent storage cartridges 506, 508, and 510 at once to executeparallel data access operations on two or on all three of the coupledstorage cartridges, depending on the specific control electronicsimplemented in the design. FIG. 5 may be understood as depicting eithera top-down view of the rack-type library storage system 500 or a sideview of such as system. For example, the storage cartridges 506, 508,and 510 may be arranged along a same row of a rack but in differentcolumns (shown from the viewpoint looking down at the rack 116 of FIG.1). In another implementation, the storage cartridges 506, 508, and 510may be understood as arranged along a same column (e.g., verticallystacked) but in different rows.

Exemplary control electronics for this or similar parallel accessdesigns are discussed with respect to FIG. 6, below. In otherimplementations, the robotically-actuated media player 502 may bedesigned to couple with and/or to provide parallel access to differentnumbers (e.g., greater than three) of storage cartridges shown anddescribed with respect to FIG. 6.

The media player 502 includes robotic actuation elements that facilitatemovement of the media player 502 relative to a subset of storagecartridges that remain fixed in the rack. After seeking the media player502 along the stage 504 to position along the Z-Y plane relative to thestorage cartridges 506, 508, and 510, end effector elements 512, 514,516, 518, 520, and 522 may be further actuated (e.g., either in theX-direction away from the stage 504 or in the Z-direction toward amost-adjacent storage cartridge) to facilitate a mating of electricalports (e.g., ports 550 and 562) and/or to position external magneticactuator components (e.g., voice coils or magnets) relative tocorresponding internal magnetic actuator components to drivemagnetically-actuated components of the storage cartridges.

For example, the robotically-actuated media player 502 may bring the endeffector elements 512 and 514 toward the storage cartridge 506 to engagean electrical coupling between ports 560 and 562 and also to positionexternal VCM magnets 564 and 566 in close proximity to a voice coil 568that is internal to the storage cartridge 506 so as to facilitategeneration of localized Lorentz forces by flowing current through thevoice coil 568 to selectively position heads supported by an actuatorfor data access. In various implementations, the robotically-actuatedmedia player 502 may include different types of external magneticactuator components including, without limitation, those componentsdescribed with respect to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3. Components of therobotically-actuated media player 502 not specifically described hereinmay be the same or similar to like-named components described elsewhereherein.

FIG. 6 is a functional block representation of a system 600 including anexample robotically-actuated media player 602 that provides paralleldata access to multiple storage cartridges in a rack-type library. In animplementation, the robotically-actuated media player 602 performsfunctions the same or similar to those described with respect to FIG. 5.

In FIG. 6, the robotically-actuated media player 602 is designed toselectively couple to three storage cartridges 604, 606, and 608 at onceand to support parallel data access operations for two storagecartridges at a time. The robotically-actuated media player 602 includesa first drive access controller 610 and a second drive access controller612. Each of the first drive access controller 610 and the second driveaccess controller 612 is coupled to a switching network (e.g., switchingnetworks 616 and 618) that each include a plurality of switches creatingsignal paths to each of the storage cartridges 604, 606, and 608. Forexample, the switching networks 616 and 618 may each include an array offield effect transistors (an FET bank array) that includes switches forboth selecting a target motor controller (e.g., one of the motorcontrollers 620, 622, and 624), and switches to selectively spin up ordown the voice coil and spindle motors of a select one of the storagecartridges 604, 606, and 608.

Each of the switching networks 616 and 618 further couples to an arrayof read/write switches 626, 628, or 630 that provide selection ofreadback channel from a select one of the storage cartridges 604, 606,and 608 to either the first drive access controller 610 or the seconddrive access controller 612. For example, the drive access controller610 may engage one or more switches in the switch network 616 to selecta preamplifier of the storage cartridge 606 as the target for a readoperation. The first drive access controller 610 engages the read/writeswitch 628 to select a readback-path that flows data read from thestorage cartridge 606 back to the drive access controller 610 (ratherthan to the drive access controller 612). In different implementations,the drive access controllers 610 and 612 may utilize differentcommunication protocols including SATA, SAS, PC1 e, or other suitableprotocol. Other implementations of the disclosed technology may includegreater than two data access controllers to allow for parallel accessesto more than two storage cartridges.

In some implementations, each of the drive access controllers 610 and612 couple to a mini-SAS or SATA single or dual port cage, whichsupplies a data connection to an external host (e.g., an externalcontroller or server) that has a SAS or SATA host bus adapter. Theexternal host includes an additional communication interface (e.g., anEthernet network interface) that facilitates communications with theoutside world.

In another implementation, one or both of the drive access controllers610 and 612 include an additional internal application processor (notshown) and Ethernet NIC to facilitate the connection to the outsideworld via an Ethernet port (e.g., a top-of-the-rack Ethernet switch).

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary library arrangement 700 of storagecartridges that may be accessed by a robotically-actuated media player(not shown). The library arrangement 700 includes multiple storagecartridges positioned in rows (e.g., a row 702) and columns (e.g., acolumn 704) within a rack 706. As shown in greater detail in expandedview 708, each row 702 of the rack 706 includes alternating, interleavedstorage cartridges that are rotated in opposite directions and spatiallyoffset from one another in opposite directions such that a first subsetof alternating storage cartridges have access ports (e.g., an accessport 710) accessible on a first side 712 of the rack 706 and a secondsubset of alternating storage cartridges have access ports accessible ona second opposite side 714 of the rack 706 (e.g., access port position716).

Spacings (e.g., a spacing 718) between alternating storage cartridgesallow room for end effector elements of the media player (not shown) tomove into proximity of and selectively coupling to each storagecartridge in the rack 706.

In the implementation of FIG. 7, the library arrangement 700 may includemultiple robotically-actuated media players with at least one mediaplayer positioned to access the first side 712 of the rack 706 and atleast one media player positioned to access the second, opposite side714 of the rack. In this sense, alternating storage cartridges within asame row are accessed by different media players. For example,odd-numbered storage cartridges in a row are accessed by a firstrobotically-actuated media player that scales a front side of the rack706 and even-numbered storage cartridges in a row are accessed by asecond robotically-actuated media player that scales a back side of therack.

This compact rack concept with interleaved storage cartridges offsetfrom one another in opposite directions allows physical couplings to beestablished between the media players and select storage cartridgewithout sacrificing rack storage capacity for such capability.

FIG. 8 illustrates example operations 800 for accessing data with arobotically-actuated media player. An identification operation 805identifies a physical position of a target storage cartridge storingdata of a logical block address (LBA) specified by a received dataaccess (read/write) command. An actuation operation 810 roboticallyactuates a media player along a plane relative to a fixed subset ofstorage cartridges in a rack to position the media player at an accessposition for the target storage cartridge. Another actuation operation815 actuates one or more end effector elements of the media playertoward the target storage cartridge when the media player is at theaccess position. The actuation operation 815 establishes an electricalconnection between the media player and the target storage cartridge tofacilitate execution of the data access command on the target storagecartridge.

FIG. 9A illustrates a top perspective view of an example storagecartridge 900 that may be accessed with a robotically-actuated mediaplayer. According to one implementation, the storage cartridge 900includes one or more disks rotated by an internal spindle motor thatreceives hardware control signals from an external read/writecontroller. For example, instead of including an internal printedcircuit board assembly (PCBA) with control electronics such as memoryand a microprocessor (e.g., a system-on-chip (SoC) or anapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), processing electronicsfor read/write functionality reside within an external media player (notshown) that may be selectively coupled to the storage cartridge 900 bycoupling to an electrical interface 902, shown on a first side end 904of the storage cartridge 900.

According to one implementation, the storage cartridge 900 may be storedin a rack-type structure accessible via a media player assembly (notshown) that self-actuates along a set of rails to selectively couple toselect storage cartridges in the rack by establishing a physical andelectrical coupling with the electrical interface 902.

According to one implementation, the storage cartridge 900 includesinternal VCM magnets and a spindle motor that receives power signals(e.g., VCM control and spindle motor control) from arobotically-actuated media player through the electrical interface 902as well as control signals for reading data from and writing data to thestorage cartridge 900. The robotically-actuated media player may, forexample include the PCBA (e.g., including read/write circuitry)traditionally included on the PCBA of a traditional HDD. By removingonly the PCBA component from the storage cartridges (as compared toother implementations that may displace other components such asmagnets), volumetric density of a storage system can be drasticallyimproved since such design does not necessarily need to include spacefor mechanical mating, clamping, or magnets between the storagecartridges in a rack-type system. By increasing volumetric and slotdensity within a cabinet or rack, the overall costs can be amortizedacross more cartridges, reducing the cost of each individual cartridgeslot.

FIG. 9B illustrates a bottom perspective view of the example storagecartridge 900 shown in FIG. 9A. Other components of the storagecartridge 900 not explicitly described above may be the same or similarto those described elsewhere herein with respect to alternateimplementations.

FIG. 10 illustrates aspects of an example racking system 1000 that usesa robotically-actuated media player assembly to selectively accessindividual storage cartridges that lack independent read/write controlcircuitry. Specifically, FIG. 10 illustrates a drawer 1002 that may bemounted to slide in and out of a stowed position within a cabinet (notshown). The exemplary drawer 1002 includes four rows of storagecartridges. In one implementation, each of the storage cartridges shownin FIG. 10 has characteristics the same or similar to those describedabove with respect to FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B.

Each of the storage cartridges can be removably accessed from the drawer1002 from a top side 1004, as shown (e.g., a user may slide open thedrawer 1002, reach down, and pull out a select one of the cartridges forrepair or replacement). Although not shown, a bottom side 1006 of thedrawer includes a set of rails and a self-actuating media playerassembly includes a PCBA that moves along the rails in a plane parallelto the base of the drawer 1002. For example, the self-actuating mediaplayer assembly may include two or more sets of read/write controlelectronics (e.g., two or more individual media players) for providingparallel data access to multiple storage cartridges in the drawer 1002.

In one implementation, each of the storage cartridges in the drawer 1002includes an interface port that faces toward the bottom side 1006 of thedrawer 1002 (e.g., faces downward per the orientation shown in FIG. 10)such that the interface ports of the storage cartridges may be exposedon the bottom side of the drawer 1002 and thereby facilitate amechanical coupling with read/write control electronics on theself-actuating media player assembly.

Various systems implementing the above-described technology may includeany number of drawers, rails, and robotically-actuated media players.Further aspects of such a system are illustrated below with respect toFIG. 11.

FIG. 11 illustrates aspects of another example racking system 1100 thatuses a robotically-actuated media player assembly 1114 to selectivelyaccess individual storage cartridges that lack independent read/writecontrol circuitry. In FIG. 11, the robotically-actuated media playerassembly 1114 includes a PCBA that includes read/write controlelectronics and that actuates along a length of a drawer 1102 (e.g., ina direction shown by arrow A) to provide selective read/write access toeach of a number of storage cartridges stored in the drawer 1102.

The exemplary drawer 1102 includes two rows of storage cartridges. Inone implementation, each of the storage cartridges shown in FIG. 11 hascharacteristics the same or similar to those described above withrespect to FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B. In one implementation, the drawer 1102is integrated into a cabinet-type storage system and is mounted to slidein and out of a stowed position within a cabinet (not shown).

In one implementation, drawer 1102 is mounted within a cabinet in aposition that is opposite (e.g., 180 degrees rotated) from that shown inFIG. 11. For example, a first side 1104 represents the bottom of thedrawer 1102 while the side 1110 represents the top of the drawer. Thefirst side 1104 of the drawer 1102 includes a set of rails (e.g., rails1106, 1108) and the robotically-actuated media player 1114 includesactuation electronics to move itself along the rails 1106, 1108 in aplane parallel to the base of the drawer 1102 (e.g., as shown in thedirection of the arrow A).

In addition to actuation electronics (e.g., a motor) for achievingpropulsion along the rails 1106, 1108, the robotically-actuated mediaplayer assembly 1114 includes read/write control electronics for readingdata from and writing data to the individual storage cartridges in thedrawer 1102. In different implementations, robotically-actuated mediaplayer assembly 1114 may include different numbers of sets of read/writecontrol electronics (e.g., two or more individual media players) forproviding simultaneous (parallel) data access to multiple storagecartridges in the drawer 1102. In the example shown, therobotically-actuated media player assembly 1114 includes four separatesets of read/write control electronics, which may be understood as beingfour separate media players 1116, 1118, 1120, and 1122. Each of themedia players 1116, 1118, 1120, and 1122 is shown to be partiallyvisible through one of two respective openings 1124, 1126 in therobotically-actuated media player assembly 1114.

According to one implementation, all of the separate media players 1116,1118, 1120, and 1122 are moved in unison in the plane defined by therails 1106 and 1108 as the robotically-actuated media player assembly1114 moves from end to end of the drawer 1102. In one implementation,the read/write control electronics of different media players arelocated at opposite ends of the media player assembly 1114 (e.g., asshown) so as to allow those media player(s) (e.g., players 1116, 1118)on a first end of the media player assembly 1114 to provide data accessto storage cartridges at positions in a first half of the drawerproximal to the first end while the media player(s) (e.g., players 1120,1122) on the second opposite end of the media player assembly 1114 areused to provide data access to storage cartridges at positions in asecond half of the drawer proximal the second end.

According to another implementation, there exist multiple media playersthat actuate independent of one another along the rails 1106 and 1108parallel to the drawer 1102. For example, the media players includeposition-aware control electronics that continuously track the positionsof one another to avoid collisions, coverage overlap, and the expeditedata access to the various cartridges within the system.

Each of the storage cartridges in the drawer 1102 includes an interfaceport (e.g., a port 1130) that is exposed at a first side of the drawer1102 adjacent to the self-actuating 1110 media player assembly 1114 suchthat the self-actuating media player assembly 1114 can electricallycouple with the interface port, such as by aligning with the targetstorage cartridge in the X-Y plane defined by the rails 1106, 1108 andin some implementations, by further actuating a coupling element (e.g.,outward from the self-actuating media player assembly 1114) in theZ-direction to establish the coupling with the interface port 1130).

The embodiments of the disclosed technology described herein areimplemented as logical steps in one or more computer systems. Thelogical operations of the presently disclosed technology are implemented(1) as a sequence of processor-implemented steps executing in one ormore computer systems and (2) as interconnected machine or circuitmodules within one or more computer systems. The implementation is amatter of choice, dependent on the performance requirements of thecomputer system implementing the disclosed technology. Accordingly, thelogical operations making up the embodiments of the disclosed technologydescribed herein are referred to variously as operations, steps,objects, or modules. Furthermore, it should be understood that logicaloperations may be performed in any order, adding and omitting asdesired, unless explicitly claimed otherwise or a specific order isinherently necessitated by the claim language.

The above specification, examples, and data provide a completedescription of the structure and use of exemplary embodiments of thedisclosed technology. Since many embodiments of the disclosed technologycan be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosedtechnology, the disclosed technology resides in the claims hereinafterappended. Furthermore, structural features of the different embodimentsmay be combined in yet another embodiment without departing from therecited claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: read/write controlelectronics integrated within a media player assembly; multiple storagecartridges arranged in an original position in a rack; and actuationmeans for achieving movement of the media player assembly relative tothe multiple storage cartridges in the rack to allow the read/writecontrol electronics within the media player assembly to selectivelycouple with and provide data access to at least a subset of the multiplestorage cartridges without moving the subset of the multiple storagecartridges from the original position within the rack.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the actuation means include rails and actuationrobotics for propelling the media player assembly relative to the rack.3. The system of claim 1, wherein the multiple storage cartridges areeach accessible for user removal from a first side of the rack andaccessed by the media player assembly from a second opposite side of therack.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the media player assemblyincludes multiple media players adapted to move in unison relative tothe storage cartridges in the rack.
 5. The system of claim 1, whereinthe media player assembly includes multiple media players adapted tomove independent of one another, each one of the media players includingposition-aware electronics for avoiding collisions with the other mediaplayers.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the media player assemblyfurther includes: actuation robotics adapted to move the media playerassembly along a fixed plane parallel to a fixed subset of the storagecartridges in the rack to position the media player assembly for accessto the storage cartridges of the subset.
 7. The system of claim 1,wherein the media player assembly is adapted to access each one of themultiple storage cartridges without moving the storage cartridge from afixed position within the rack.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein themedia player assembly is configured to provide parallel access to thesubset of the multiple storage cartridges.
 9. A method comprising:identifying a physical location of a target storage device identified bya data access command, the storage device residing in a rack includingmultiple storage devices; and actuating a media player assembly thatincludes at least one media player along a plane relative to a fixedsubset of the multiple storage devices to position the at least onemedia player for selective coupling with the target storage devicewithin the rack without moving the target storage device from thephysical location in the rack.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein themedia player assembly includes at least one set of read/write controlelectronics for accessing data stored on the multiple storage devices.11. The method of claim 9, wherein actuating the media player assemblyfurther comprises actuating the media player assembly along rails. 12.The method of claim 9, removing the target storage device through afirst side of the rack that is opposite a side of the rack from whichthe target storage drive is accessed by the media player assembly. 13.The method of claim 9, wherein the media player assembly includesmultiple media players and actuating the media player assembly furtherentails moving the multiple media players in unison relative to themultiple storage devices in the rack.
 14. The method of claim 9, furthercomprising: providing parallel data access to at least two of themultiple storage devices.
 15. The method of claim 9, wherein read/writecontrol electronics on the media player assembly send actuator controlsignals to the target storage device.
 16. The method of claim 9, whereinthe multiple storage devices are arranged in a drawer and the mediaplayer assembly actuates along a plane parallel to a base of the drawer.17. One or more memory devices encoding computer executable instructionsfor executing a computer process comprising: identifying a physicallocation of a target storage cartridge targeted by a data accesscommand, the target storage cartridge residing on a rack includingmultiple storage cartridges; actuating a media player assembly thatincludes at least one media player along a plane parallel to the rackand relative to a fixed subset of the multiple storage cartridges toposition the at least one media player for selective coupling with thetarget storage cartridge without moving the target storage device fromthe physical location in the rack.
 18. The one or more memory devices ofclaim 17, wherein the computer process further comprises: establishing acoupling between the media player and the target storage cartridgethrough a first side of the rack that is opposite a side of the rackfrom which the target storage cartridge is removably accessed by a user.19. The one or more memory devices of claim 17, wherein actuating themedia player assembly further comprises actuating the media playerassembly along rails.
 20. The one or more memory devices of claim 19,wherein the rails extend along the base of a drawer storing the multiplestorage cartridges.